Record haul of illegal ivory seized

Customs officials seized a record-breaking 3-tonne shipment of ivory found in a container at the Sihanoukville Provincial Autonomous Port on Friday, police said.

“This elephant ivory was hidden inside a soybean container . . . It was [to be] imported from Malaysia to a third country via Cambodia,” Colonel Seang Kosal, acting chief of Preah Sihanouk provincial police, said. “It was found after customs police scanned the soybean container and found [the ivory],” he added.

Upon opening and check-ing the container, customs police uncovered 108 packages of ivory weighing more than 3,000 kilograms. The ivory is being held at the port for further examination.

“Police now are searching for the owner of this ivory in order to bring him or her to court,” Kosal said.

Lou Kimsrun, director of the Preah Sihanouk Provincial Autonomous Port, could not be reached for comment.